How to move furniture?

[farmkid]

There's a fairly good chance the legs will come off easily. If so, that's probably your best option. Otherwise, you might look at getting a hitch installed on your car (probably ~$200) and then renting a trailer (~$15) from Uhaul. Uhaul can sell you the hitch and install it. The cost will be a bit less than renting a truck, but it will be easier to drive, and then you will have a hitch on your car you can use for other things later (bike rack, ski rack, towing, etc.)

If you're handy at all you can even put it on by yourself. You can buy the hitch for ~$100-$170 and put it on in an hour or so. There are often pre-drilled holes already there. You just need to bolt it on. If you are considering that at all, though, you should definitely look up some instructions first.

 

[DonIago]

Thanks everyone for the continuing feedback.

Furniture dimensions: Coffee table: 48" L x 28" W x 18" H

End table: 24" W x 26" L x 25 1/2 " H

Estimated coffee table weight: 30 lbs. Presumably the end table is lighter.

My brain's addled by a cold right now, and my ability to visualize this stuff has -never- been very good, but given that my back seats fold down it almost sounds like I could just shove the coffee table into the trunk...maybe?

The end table would obviously be logistically simpler, but may be pointless. Need to measure some furniture here first.

Parents believe disassembling the coffee table would be possible, but also think it's likely that reassembly would be....dubious.

Given the business I've made of this, I'm morbidly amused by the thought that it could be easy as just dumping the thing into the trunk of my Civic.

Anyway, some of the above points in no particular order:
1) I'm decidedly not handy at all. I've never driven anything more "unconventional" than an Isuzu Trooper, so I'm a little leery of driving a trailer, though if anyone who's done so could speak to the learning curve there, I wouldn't mind hearing about that. That said, as much as the idea of driving a truck/trailer makes me squirm a bit, the idea of attaching the table to the top of my tiny-ass Civic (it's a coupe) kind of horrifies me.

2) I'm not very financially gifted right now, and regard this whole operation as a "would be nice" rather than a "must have". I'm not necessarily averse to spending $150 or so on this project, but anything above that and I start to wonder what exactly I'm doing...and whether just buying a new table for myself would be the best course. (To be fair, I haven't shopped for such so I might be deluding myself cost-wise).

3) AFAIK I currently don't have any friends with vehicles designed for any serious cargo movement, much less ones who'd let me borrow said vehicle or road-trip with me.

4) If renting a vehicle for $75 or so with unlimited mileage is really an option (not something I saw but I'm open to the possibility), I agree that may be my play.

The sooner we invent the cargo transporter the better!!!

 

[Locutus of Bored]

Even if it's too big to slide all the way into the trunk*, you can just strap it down and go**.











*
**

(Pardon me, I'm only one pop culture reference away from getting a free sandwich)

 

[Kirby]

Furniture dimensions: Coffee table: 48" L x 28" W x 18" H

End table: 24" W x 26" L x 25 1/2 " H

Those will easily fit in a mini-van or an SUV, both of which are easy to rent at any car rental place. As mentioned upstream, just rent it in your home city, drive to your parent's house and come back... Assuming you're older than 25, or whatever the 'magical car-rental age' is now days.

 

[DonIago]

For better or worse, I'm significantly older than 25.

Enterprise charges $260 for up to 450 miles for a minivan, so that's not gonna work, but I'll look elsewhere...

Scout101: What places did you see that offered unlimited miles?

 

[Kirby]

For better or worse, I'm significantly older than 25.

Hey I just noticed you're in Burlington, VT. So is my brother and his family, and they have a Ford Expedition; you have my permission to go borrow it, and you don't even need to top off the tank. Just tell them Kirby sent you.

 

[DonIago]

(laughs) Maybe we can simplify this further...mail me the keys and address and I'll just take it out when I need it?

I love Burlington...well, when it's not barely over freezing in March and we're anticipating a blizzard...

 

[farmkid]

Enterprise charges $260 for up to 450 miles for a minivan, so that's not gonna work, but I'll look elsewhere...

Did you get that from the website or did you call? I just looked at the Enterprise website, and it told me you could rent a minivan for ~$90/day and a pickup for ~$65/day, both with unlimited miles. That was at both of the non-airport locations in Burlington. You might want to double check your numbers.

 

[urbandefault]

A lot of tables like that have legs that are bolted on. If so, it's no problem to take the legs off. You should be able to work the 4' table top into the passenger side with the seat reclined.

If your rear seat backs fold down, just put the table top in through the trunk.

 

[DonIago]

While my parents think disassembly may be possible, they're a lot less optimistic about reassembly, so moving it as a single unit is probably how it would need to go.

farmkid - Next time I'm planning to see the parents it's likely a go down Friday, return Monday situation, so even the pickup would easily be over $250 at that point once gas is taken into account. I did find another rental place I need to call once I'm not being sick, and it's possible the move could occur at some point other than during my next planned visit to them.

I really do appreciate everyone's suggestions. Sorry if I sound like I'm shooting people down and/or being pessimistic. I'd just like a solution that's not quite so pricey.

 

[Tora Ziyal]

DonIago, when your brain clears up from that cold, go fold the rear seats down and measure the space you've got in the trunk and back seat. I used to have a Civic coupe, too. You'd be amazed at what I could fit in it!

 

[DonIago]

Maybe after the blizzard we're supposed to get tomorrow and Thursday. Sigh. Stupid winter.

 

[DonIago]

Talked with my mom over the weekend, and she agrees (in fact she was more conservative than I am) that if the best options we can find for the coffee table short of fitting it into my vehicle somehow are at least $200 than there's not much point. I don't -need- the coffee table, and it's not a family heirloom or such.

Thanks again to everyone for all of the suggestions...it was honestly much more than I was expecting, and quite gratifying!

 

[Captain Ice]

DonIago, when your brain clears up from that cold, go fold the rear seats down and measure the space you've got in the trunk and back seat. I used to have a Civic coupe, too. You'd be amazed at what I could fit in it!

You never know until you try (or measure). I once got a sofa into a Ford Escort hatchback and almost got the hatch closed on it too (tied it down).